Tennis Cordelières: Best foot forward!

It's been too long since I had a game of tennis. Six weeks in England over the summer and a spectacular toe injury, caused by a freak escalator accident in Boots the Chemist, conspired to keep me off court during peak season. Even if we'd been in Paris though I suspect the record temperatures in July and August may have had a similar effect.

Now the rentrée is upon us - the French word that means so much more than 'back to school' - so for me it's back to tennis and after many visits to www.tennis.paris.fr  I finally managed to bag a court for 10am on Saturday (rather early for some members of the family, but what better way to kick off the weekend?).

Tennis Cordelières is in the 13th arrondissement not far from the  Corvisart Metro station. I've never had a particularly favourable impression of the 13th from visits to previous courts near the Place d'Italie. But the roads around Rue des Cordèlieres were more low-rise than concrete jungle  (though there are one or two tower blocks thrown in for good measure) and we even found a leafy short cut through a park to reach the courts.

There are two courts tucked in between the buildings - both well surfaced and with well-maintained nets - and as luck would have it we managed to play on both! Just as we came off court after our first set the other court came free following a cancellation and we were able to book it at reduced rate because we were playing with the children. A bonus two hour session meant we had plenty of time to find our form. The weather was perfect, dry and fine, but with no dazzling sunshine to blind us for overhead shots. My toe proved no handicap, though the same could not be said for my husband's shoulder, injured in a boating incident in Bandol, and my son and I won easily by two sets to love. 

Tennis Cordèlieres

35 Rue des Cordèlieres

75013 Paris

Metro: Corvisart